If all goes well, then Naseeruddin Shah’s debut directorial venture Yun Hota To Kaisa Hota will premiere in the competition section of the Cannes Film Festival, scheduled to begin from May 17.
Says the film’s producer Shabbir Boxwala, “We will have the final talks with the festival director on February 28 and are hopeful our film will open there. The film’s subject has appealed to the organisers and they will take a call on it soon.”
Meanwhile, the film’s director, Shah says he would be happy if the film finds its way to the festival.
“For a film which, doesn’t have any commercial ingredients or follow any Hindi film formulae, it would be a matter of pride if it does reach out to an international audience. And for a film, which has been made on a modest budget without excessive publicity, a screening at Cannes would be great.”
Both Boxwala and Shah are optimistic that the film will be ready in time for the French festival. And does the subject have universal appeal? “Yes, I hope so, even if I say so myself,” says Shah.
Yun Hota To Kaisa Hota is a film with four individual stories that all come together in the end. The story is about the great US dream. In an earlier interview, Shah had said, “For a lot of us, except maybe those who are very affluent, going to the US helps in fulfilling a lot of needs and desires. And irrespective of any profession, everybody feels an opportunity to work in the United States can help them in a lot of things. If a poor man is able to save enough funds to go to work there, within a year he can easily pay off his debts back in India. My film has a teenage love story, a family drama and one about a Gujarati businessman who organises cultural shows abroad and takes illegal immigrants with him.”
{{/usCountry}}Yun Hota To Kaisa Hota is a film with four individual stories that all come together in the end. The story is about the great US dream. In an earlier interview, Shah had said, “For a lot of us, except maybe those who are very affluent, going to the US helps in fulfilling a lot of needs and desires. And irrespective of any profession, everybody feels an opportunity to work in the United States can help them in a lot of things. If a poor man is able to save enough funds to go to work there, within a year he can easily pay off his debts back in India. My film has a teenage love story, a family drama and one about a Gujarati businessman who organises cultural shows abroad and takes illegal immigrants with him.”
{{/usCountry}}The film features Paresh Rawal, Irrfan Khan, Konkona Sen Sharma, Ayesha Takia, Ankur Khanna, Saroj Khan, Suhasini Mulay and Ratna Pathak Shah. Shah’s son Imaaduddin debuts with this film.
Says Boxwalla, “If the film premieres at Cannes, I will simultaneously release it in India.”